Tesla Will Open More Tesla Stores in New York After Pact

By Mark Clothier -
Mar 29, 2014

Tesla Motors Inc. and New York auto
dealer lobbying groups reached an agreement that allows the
electric-car maker to keep its five company-owned stores in the
state and add others, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced yesterday.

The “agreement reaffirms New York’s long-standing
commitment to the dealer franchise system, while making sure New
York remains a leader in spurring innovative businesses and
encouraging zero emissions vehicle sales,” Cuomo said in a
statement. Legislation in New York will be introduced “in the
near future” to implement the agreement, said Cuomo, a 56-year-old Democrat. The statement didn’t say how many other stores
would be added.

The New York agreement comes less than two weeks after New
Jersey Governor Chris Christie barred Tesla from selling cars
directly to consumers at its two stores in that state. Tesla has
said its locations at the Garden State Plaza in Paramus and the
Mall at Short Hills in Millburn will become “galleries” when
the ban takes effect.

Tesla is battling dealers state by state for the right to
sell its cars directly to consumers. Ohio, New York, Maryland
and other states have previously tried to block the company, and
retailers in Texas successfully backed the nation’s toughest
restrictions. Yesterday’s agreement with New York dealers came
three days after Tesla reached a pact with the Ohio Automobile
Dealers Association for up three stores in that state.

Dealers have said Tesla’s model would set a precedent that
could let other automakers sidestep the way independent
franchisees have sold and serviced vehicles for eight decades.
If Tesla succeeds in bypassing middlemen, some argue that future
startups or entrants from China or elsewhere could sell directly
to consumers or even create online retail outlets that sidestep
dealers entirely.